Image via Marvel
The Marvel Cinematic Universe—or should we be saying Multiverse?—just got a lot bigger. If the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home taught us anything, it’s that Wong is always right. After Peter Parker and Doctor Strange ignored the interim Sorcerer Supreme’s warning and left reality crumbling at its seams thanks to a bad spell, it took all of Strange’s magic to try and restore the Multiverse. Now it looks like his tampering with space and time several times has yielded dire consequences.
The first trailer for the Sam Raimi-directed Doctor Strange sequel film, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, reveals that all of the meddling Strange has done using the Time Stone in the Infinity saga and through trying to help Peter Parker has left the Multiverse in shambles. Seeking the help of Wanda Maximoff and America Chavez, Strange must now go on a quest to restore the reality that he has muddied with his irresponsible use of magic. It also looks like Strange will have to answer to a higher judicial body for his irresponsible actions as well. To put it plainly, this trailer is insane. Not is it strongly suggested that Patrick Stewart will be reprising his role as Charles Xavier, but we also get our first look at the MCU’s Illuminati, Xochitl Gomez’s America Chavez, aka Miss America, and variants of other characters besides Strange.
Elizabeth Olsen said a few months back that this might be the scariest Marvel movie yet, and this first look is as eerie and menacing as she made it sound. With the film due out May 6, 2022, and a whole lot to dive into before then, here are the biggest takeaways from the first trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
The Re-introduction of Professor X
What might go down as one of the biggest reveals in MCU history is hearing Patrick Stewart’s voice as he will more than likely be reprising his role as Professor X. Disney owns the rights to all of the Fox X-Men characters, so there were already rumors swirling that a version of Professor X might appear in this film, but to have it confirmed in this trailer is truly insane because the implications are endless. We saw a version of Professor X get killed at the end of Logan, which was a part of the very complicated X-Men film franchise. While it’s very unlikely that Stewart will become an MCU mainstay after his cameo in Multiverse of Madness, it would be fitting if he ushered in the era of mutants for this universe. This could be a Professor X variant that didn’t grow senile and kill the other X-Men by accident like in Logan, or this could be a Professor X from a universe that discovered multiversal travel, hence his seat in what could be Marvel’s Illuminati in the trailer. Regardless, all roads look to be leading that much closer to a reverse House of M storyline that will bring mutants into the MCU somehow.
First Look at Marvel’s Illuminati
Right before we get a confirmation that Patrick Stewart is back as Professor Charles Xavier, Doctor Strange stands before a grand council in handcuffs. This council looks like Marvel’s Illuminati, a judicial body in the comics that has included different MCU characters in the past, but its founding members are Tony Stark, Namor, Black Bolt, Professor X, Doctor Strange, and Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic. Marvel’s Illuminati has traditionally acted as a secret security council that oversees threats too large for individual groups like the X-Men, Fantastic Four, Avengers, or Inhumans to handle alone. In the trailer, we can see two seats occupied, and my theory is that the one on the far left might be Richards, given the silhouette’s slender build. There have also been wild rumors swirling that we might see a Tony Stark variant played by Tom Cruise. Cruise is the leading contender for the theory because the actor revealed in a 2018 interview that he almost took the role of Iron Man over Robert Downey Jr., but he ended up passing on the job.
While I doubt Cruise is involved in Multiverse of Madness, I think we will see an Iron Man variant, especially considering Strange is led into the Illuminati’s chambers by Ultron sentries. That could either mean that there is a universe where Stark’s Ultron initiative didn’t go bad and he was actually able to put an iron suit around the world, or that Ultron himself could be on the panel taking the place of a character like Black Bolt or Namor who hasn’t been introduced in any Marvel or Fox film property. Others theorize that the Superior Iron Man might be a part of this Illuminati, a version of Tony Stark from the 2014 Superior Iron Man comic run that is basically a combination of his worst attributes. Either way, this is a massive reveal and makes Stewarts’ line “we should tell him the truth” that much more ominous.
There Will be Variants of other MCU Characters
It was revealed in the first teaser trailer that Doctor Strange will be facing off against an evil variant of himself, but it looks like he won’t be the only hero to have a variant of themselves appear in the movie. So far, based on the new trailer and TV spot released after the Super Bowl, there will be at least three Strange variants (and counting), including Defender Strange, evil Strange Supreme, and a version of Doctor Strange who is championed in his universe and has a statue in front of the Sanctum Sanctorum.
The TV spot also might have revealed a zombie version of Doctor Strange. In the trailer, Wanda is shown to come face-to-face with a variant of herself in a shot of the two in her Westview home. There’s also another scene of a Wanda variant fighting what might be a variant of Monica Rambeau that is Captain Marvel. This scene looks like it could be taking place in Illuminati headquarters as well.
Wanda Maximoff Will Be Central to the Story
While this is something we already knew, the first trailer for Multiverse of Madness confirms that the Scarlett Witch will play an integral role in helping restore, and maybe destroy(?), the Marvel Multiverse as we know it. While the footage from the teaser showed Strange seeking Wanda’s help after the events in WandaVision where she lives alone on a ranch, these new shots show Wanda questioning the hypocrisy of Strange using magic irresponsibly and being a hero, but her using it to create a family and being viewed as a villain. We also know that there have been several rumors floating around that Strange would eventually have to fight Wanda in this movie. We don’t get any hints as to what makes her turn to the dark side here, but we do get more shots of the Scarlett Witch in her comic-accurate costume and fighting what might be a variant of Captain Marvel.
One of the most popular running theories is that Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will lead to a reverse House of M situation for the MCU. Wanda, still distraught after losing her two children (that never really existed in the first place?), will use her chaos magic to command mutants into existence, opening up a lane for the X-Men and other newly acquired Marvel properties to appear in future films. We now have confirmation that Patrick Stewart will be returning to play Professor X, so maybe this theory might come to fruition and other Fox X-Men will appear.
Tie-ins to the Disney+ Series
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness will be the first Marvel movie to directly address the events that happened in some of the other Disney+ series, which marks a significant tie-in moment. In the teaser, Doctor Strange acknowledges to Wanda that he knows what happened in Westview, the town that she put a hex on in WandaVision, which also begs the question of why didn’t he pull up and intervene? We also get a scene of buildings outside the Sanctum Sanctorum melting into a black goo that looks exactly like a live-action callback to scenes from What If…? Episode 4 when that version of the Strange destroyed reality with his constant use of the Time Stone to try and save Christine Palmer.
We have yet to see any of the aftermaths from the events in Loki that created branches in the timeline, but with WandaVision and What If…? having some weight in Multiverse of Madness, it would make sense that the misadventures of Loki and Sylvie destroying the Sacred Timeline would be another problem Strange will have to solve since, you know, he’s the Sorcerer Supreme. Kevin Fiege and Marvel have confirmed that all of the events from What If…? were canon, so that means any of those characters could show up in this movie, including evil Strange Supreme who we might have seen in a more What If…? accurate way in the final shot of the trailer.
Better Look at Miss America
We didn’t get to see her face in the teaser that was released a few months ago, but this trailer reveals the denim-starred back of Xochitl Gomez who is playing America Chavez, aka Miss America. In the comics, Miss America is a hero from a different universe with the ability to kick star-shaped holes into space and travel to different realities. We might get a glimpse of her home universe in this trailer, with her bound in Strange’s nightmare and a rippling star-shaped whole broken behind her. Miss America might also play a key role in helping Strange journey to different universes as he attempts to stabilize the Multiverse. We also get a shot of a Defender Strange tumbling through one of these star-shaped portals right before the shattered Marvel Studios logo credits roll in.
Who Will be the Main Villain?
At first glance, it’s easy to say that Wanda will be the central antagonist in Multiverse of Madness, but I think that’s a red herring. Given what we know about her already, and the new things revealed in the trailer, it looks like the Scarlett Witch might be the one laying siege to Kamar-Taj and attacking Illuminati HQ. However, while I do think a Wanda variant will be at the heart of these conflicts, I don’t think she will be the main antagonist. Evil Strange Supreme is another strong candidate since we see him face off against our Strange, and he might be the figure conjuring dark spirits in the trailer’s final shot. But the comic villain yet to be confirmed in Multiverse of Madness is Mephisto, someone who many believed would be revealed to be the big bad at the end of WandaVision. Mephisto’s arrival is still on the table, and I think that there’s a reason he has yet to be teased in any promo material, leaving room for a more significant reveal in the movie’s final act.
Based on the new promotional poster for the movie, many have theorized that one of the shattered shards of reality behind Doctor Strange is reflecting Deadpool, a character that has been known to break the fourth wall. In a very Deadpool fashion, the character made his first unofficial Marvel Cinematic Universe debut when Ryan Renolds appeared as the hero in an ad spot for his movie Free Guy with Korg from Thor: Ragnarok. Marvel’s Kevin Fiege also confirmed that Deadpool 3 will be taking place in the MCU, so it would make sense if the Merc with a Mouth makes his debut in a film centered around Multiversal collisions.
Elsewhere in the poster is also a clear shot of Peggy Carter’s Captain Carter shield. Captain Carter was a prominent character in What If…?, and since the events of that animated show were canon we might see Hayley Atwell reprise her role as the British-agent-turned-super-soldier. Other shards in the poster reflect the faces of different Doctor Strange variants, new shots of Wanda Maximoff and possibly her different variants, America Chavez, and other interesting images that might hold some hidden cameos.